10 months ago
Archaeological Evidence Debates Delhi's Link to Ancient Indraprastha
Some people think the city of Delhi is built on the place where an ancient capital called Indraprastha used to be, from a famous old story called the Mahabharata.
To see if this is true, archaeologists have dug at a place called Purana Qila in Delhi many times.
They found old pottery called Painted Grey Ware, which is from a very long time ago, around 1000 BCE.
Some archaeologists believe finding this pottery means the stories might be true and that people lived there during the time of the Mahabharata.
However, other archaeologists are not so sure.
They say this kind of pottery has been found in many other places too, not just ones connected to the stories.
They think it just shows that people lived in many places around that time and used similar things.
So, while there's evidence of very old settlements, whether it's exactly the famous Indraprastha is still a debate among experts.
Archaeological excavations at Delhi's Purana Qila have unearthed Painted Grey Ware (PGW) pottery, dating from approximately 1100 BCE to 400 BCE.
The finding of PGW has fueled debate about whether Purana Qila is the historical site of Indraprastha, the Pandavas' capital mentioned in the Mahabharata.
Some archaeologists, like Vasant Swarnkar, interpret the PGW discovery as evidence of activity during the Mahabharata period and continuous habitation in Delhi since 1200 BCE.
Other experts, including R S Bisht and Y S Rawat, are skeptical, noting PGW's presence at numerous non-Mahabharata related sites and the existence of older cultural layers at some locations.
Historian Upinder Singh suggests PGW indicates settlements with similar material culture around 1000 BCE, rather than a direct confirmation of the Mahabharata narrative.
- Who
- Archaeologists and historians debating the link between Delhi and ancient Indraprastha, and MP Praveen Khandelwal who proposed renaming Delhi.
- What
- Investigation into archaeological evidence, particularly Painted Grey Ware (PGW) pottery, to support or refute the claim that present-day Delhi is built on the site of Indraprastha, the capital of the Pandavas.
- Where
- Purana Qila, Delhi, India, believed to be the site of ancient Indraprastha.
- When
- Excavations have occurred over the last seven decades, with a key discovery of PGW in 2014. The proposal to rename Delhi was recently made, coinciding with Delhi's Foundation Day (November 1st).
- Why
- To establish historical and civilisational links between modern Delhi and the epic era of the Mahabharata, a goal revived by a recent proposal to rename the city.
Key facts
- Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) Excavations
- Seven rounds of excavations conducted at Purana Qila.
- Key Discovery
- Fragments of Painted Grey Ware (PGW) pottery found.
- PGW Dating
- Approximately 1100 BCE to 500-400 BCE.
- Expert Opinion (Pro-Link)
- Vasant Swarnkar suggests PGW at Purana Qila provides evidence of Mahabharata period activity and continuous habitation from 1200 BCE.
- Expert Opinion (Skeptical)
- R S Bisht and Y S Rawat question the direct link between PGW and the Mahabharata, noting PGW is found at non-epic related sites and older cultural levels exist at some sites.
- Historian's View
- Upinder Singh states PGW indicates settlements from about 1000 BCE with similar material culture, not necessarily a direct link to the Mahabharata story.
- Recent Proposal
- Chandni Chowk MP Praveen Khandelwal proposed renaming Delhi to Indraprastha.
Quotes
Y. S. Rawat
Current Director General of ASI
“It is hard to connect PGW with Mahabharata because we don’t even know when the events in the Mahabharata actually happened.”
indianexpress.com
“As an archaeologist, I will not say that this is a Mahabharata site.”
indianexpress.com
Praveen Khandelwal
Chandni Chowk MP
“Delhi’s history is not merely thousands of years old, it is the living embodiment of Indian civilisation and the glorious legacy of the city of Indraprastha established by the Pandavas.”
indianexpress.com
Satarupa Bal
Assistant archaeologist at the site
“Right before closing down for the season, we decided to make one last attempt in a small trench… just in case. And we got lucky! It was like finding gold.”
indianexpress.com
Vasant Swarnkar
Led the ASI’s 2014 excavation
“With this find of PGW we can claim with certainty that the history of Delhi can be traced back to 1200 BCE. It was well established by B B Lal that PGW is associated with the Mahabharata period, so now we can say that some activities of the Mahabharata period happened in this site. The Purana Qila excavation also proves that there has been continuous habitation in Delhi from 1200 BCE till today.”
indianexpress.com
R. S. Bisht
Retired Joint Director General of the ASI
“The only logic of connecting the Mahabharata sites to PGW is that they were found in these other sites that feature in the epic. But then, that’s how most things are settled in history.”
indianexpress.com
Upinder Singh
Historian
“inhabited from about 1000 BCE onwards and that people who lived there shared a similar material culture.”
indianexpress.com
Sources
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